How many of you are employed by a big corporation? Millions of Canadians and Americans are employees of corporations. This means the salary you earn feeds your family and pays your taxes among other things. The taxes the corporations and you the individual pay to governments goes toward education, health services, infrastructure and other essential services.

The taxes collected by local, provincial (or State) and Federal governments comes from individuals and corporations. These monies pay for health care, education, infrastructure and many other services most of us take for granted. Government in and of itself has no income except taxes.

This is the reason I can’t understand why big corporations are always being bad mouthed. They’re the first to be blamed when things aren’t going well, not governments, but corporations. There is no doubt corporations aren’t perfect. Under the law they are basically like individuals, well individuals aren’t perfect. There are good and bad in all things.

Corporations are accused of:
– Being unregulated and therefore running wild.
– Being a drain on society.
– Not being good citizens.
– Being polluters.
– Having no empathy.
– Being uncaring of the world they operate in.
– Making excessive profits.

Facts About Corporations society often fails to recognize:,
– They are in fact over-regulated in most cases.
– Taxed to the maximum.
– Employ millions of people.
– Give millions of dollars to charities.
– Support the arts.
– Support cities and towns wherever they operate.
– Work with governments and others to reduce their footprint.
– Actively work to reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions and have been for many years now.
– Their operations comply with and in most cases exceed government environmental and safety regulations.
– A large percentage of their profits are re-invested in research and development and expansion which benefits society and employees.
– Are governed and held accountable by shareholders, governments, and society for their behavior.

Corporations deserve a little more respect. Before you condemn them make sure you have the facts. Sure they aren’t perfect, but they are a key part of our sustainable society.

Recently I discussed the G-7 pledge to decarbonize our economies by 2100. As a follow up let’s talk about energy sources and fuels able to take the place of carbon-based ones like coal, crude oil, and natural gas. Remember we have to find something that will power our automobiles and trucks, heat our homes and power our cities. Whatever it is must be non-polluting, not produce greenhouse gases, be abundant, cheap and easy to produce, transport and store.

Hydrogen:

The best candidate is hydrogen the most abundant element in the universe. Hydrogen fuel cells are already in use powering vehicles, cars, trucks and buses. There are rumours in the automotive world BMW is planning to introduce a hydrogen powered car in the near future.

The challenge is the ability to produce, transport and store hydrogen safely and cheaply. In the United States the Department of Energy (DOE) has been conducting feasibility studies for many years into the use of hydrogen as a fuel and energy source that could replace fossil fuels. In Canada, and British Columbia in particular, there are buses and cars being operated using hydrogen fuel cells as the power source.

The biggest drawback right now is the lack of infrastructure. There are only a few filling stations dispensing hydrogen for vehicles. Best of all vehicles powered by hydrogen are 100% non-polluting. The by-product is water. However it does take energy to obtain hydrogen.

Nuclear Energy:

Nuclear power generation supplies roughly 20% of the energy needs of the United States today. Energy produced by nuclear means is clean and non-polluting. The major disadvantage is the need for safe, secure long-term storage of the radioactive waste produced.

Solar Power:

Power from our sun has great potential, but technology needs to be developed further to make it a viable source as a replacement. Solar is being used to generate power at many locations around the world. Solar panels are used to heat water and supply power to remote locations.

If all the solar energy the sun bombards our Earth with could be captured it would exceed the world’s energy needs 10,000 times over. It is an inexhaustible supply of free energy, but it has to be captured and stored economically and efficiently.

Wind Power:

Power from the wind is at first glance a viable option, but it is restricted because it is intermittent. The number of wind turbines needed to generate massive amounts of energy is prohibitive. It’s definitely a power source that should be in the mix, but realistically not a great alternative to fossil fuel by itself. The wind turbines are considered unsightly by many and the blades kill many birds.

Others:

Hydro-electric, Tidal and Geo-thermal power are all site-specific meaning they can’t be generated everywhere. Also the sources of these types of power are limited. So although good clean, economic sources of energy their use is restricted to local areas.

I believe over the long-term fossil fuels can be largely replaced, but much work remains to be done. These research and feasibility studies must be continued. In parallel with the use of fossil fuels. Society must prepare for the day when we can decarbonize our economies. Our long term future depends on it. Meanwhile fossil fuels are here to stay. We need to use them wisely and reduce their footprint.